Skype has brought Yahoo exec Madhu Yarlagadda on board as the new Chief Development Officer, with plans to further scale out Skype’s services. With 22 years of experience under his belt, Yarlagadda will be working with Josh Silverman, Skype’s CEO, towards growing the company. Yarlagadda, the former VP of Engineering for Yahoo Communities (including Yahoo Voice), worked with the company towards spreading the VoIP service and related products across the US.

The change of pace for Yarlagadda brings new challenges, as Skype seeks some expansion itself. From an infrastructure perspective, there’s a great deal more that can be done with Skype, particularly if the VoIP company wants to position itself for telecommunication dominance as the future becomes more digital.

“I am excited to be joining Skype at this critical stage in the company’s evolution,” said Madhu Yarlagadda. “It will be a real privilege to build on the many core strengths of the Skype’s global portfolio as the company continues to deliver groundbreaking customer experiences on new platforms and devices.”

Looks like Skype is ready to step things up a bit. No wonder, as competition continues to heat up. One major threat to Skype is the built-in VoIP options that could come standard on smart phones. We’ve already caught a glimpse of this, with the iPhone 4 FaceTime app. Though Skype is rather looking forward to integrating with such apps, it’s still a necessary goal for the VoIP service.

Skype has already begun moving towards expansion, particularly in the mobile industry. The company has released an update for Symbian phones, and has even used the World Cup as an excuse to run promos for free, international calls. What will be key for Skype is finding more ways to become readily accessible to users, even beyond voice. Both consumer and enterprise markets are ripe for this, even as some petition Google for more VoIP options with Voice.

Taking a cue from the Google Voice debacle, Skype can also see how consumer demands can sprout around access alone. It also reiterates Skype’s need to stay on its toes, as a browser-integrated launch of VoIP on Google Voice indicates the company’s centralized focus on its browser for individualized (and cross-app) needs.